This Garlic Ginger Bok Choy recipe is a great way to get healthy greens into your diet. It’s flavored with fish sauce, sesame oil, garlic, and ginger. I don’t use soy sauce or any foods with soy in my recipes since I’m on a soy-free diet. This challenge helps me get very creative with flavors when I create stir fry recipes.
You may be wondering, what is bok choy? Bok choy is a crunchy, leafy green vegetable that is part of the cruciferous family. Like kale and broccoli, bok choy is incredibly healthy. Bok choy is packed with vitamin C, vitamin A, and zinc. When you buy bok choy, look for bright green leaves that are not wilted and firm hardy stems. Bok choy is available year round, but its peak season is mid-winter through early spring.
This paleo side dish is fabulous served with my Sesame Salmon Burger recipe.
- 1¼ pounds baby bok choy
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon celtic sea salt
- 10 scallions, finely sliced
- 2 large cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1½ inch piece ginger, thinly sliced
- Slice bottoms off baby bok choy
- Slice bok choy into lengthwise strips ½-inch wide (like long noodles)
- In a small bowl, combine fish sauce, sesame oil, and arrowroot
- Make a paste-like slurry dissolving the arrowroot
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat
- When oil is hot, add bok choy and salt
- Cook, tossing frequently with metal tongs until slightly wilted
- Add scallions, ginger and garlic and stir constantly until fragrant
- Stir in sauce and quickly mix with vegetables, until thickened
- Serve right away, while hot
This Garlic Ginger Bok Choy recipe is adapted from one in Fine Cooking called Stir-Fried Bok Choy with Garlic, Ginger, and Scallions by Susie Middleton. I changed mine up a bit, eliminating the corn starch and chicken stock from it.
Here are some other healthy paleo side dish recipes for you:
Angela says
I made this today for the first time and it was delicious! I love bok choy and ginger already so it was great to enjoy it in another form. Thanks!
Elana says
Angela, so glad to hear this was delicious!
Kristi says
This was incredible!!!! My family and I loved it so much! Thank you for all of your wonderful recipes!
Elana says
Kristi, You’re welcome! I’m so happy to hear that this was incredible!
Charissa says
Oh my, I’m anxious to try this…it looks beautiful and healthy.
Bok Choy is sort of one of those strange vegetables that I just can’t help but love. Thanks for featuring it!
Elana says
Charissa, you’re welcome!
Amy says
My husband and kids would love this recipe, especially when I add the giant white morels that we recently found on our land. Looking forward to your next post on wild edibles!
Elana says
That sounds delicious!
Dr. Sarah Cimperman says
This would be great with tat soi!
Elana says
What a great idea!
Marinka says
Adding arrowroot to bok choy is such a great idea! I tried it tonight and I finally ended up with a nice thick sauce, instead of the watery stuff it usually is. Thanks!
Elana says
Marinka, you’re welcome!
Heidi says
I made this yesterday and it was super yummy! Ok, I modified it, I should say [*blush*]. No fish sauce, but subbed instead 1T of Braggs. Out of fresh garlic and ginger, so just 1t of garlic powder. Swapped 1/2 red onion for the scallions. And broc & portobella mushrooms for the bok choy. (“Kitchen Sink Stir Fry” was on the menu, so I had to make do.) Officially the BEST stir fry I’ve ever made. Thanks Elana
Elana says
Heidi, the BEST stir fry you’ve ever made? Wow, thanks!
Mrs.Buck says
mmm, this looks really good! I’ve never been sure how to use bok choy other than in a stir fry so I’m excited to try this out!
Janis says
Elana,
This recipe sounds great, will give it a try.
I live in the Denver area and would love to take a class, are you planning any for this year? I see you haven’t had any for over a year.
Lesley says
Hi Elana, I love following your blog! You have so many great ideas! Thank you!!
I volunteer for the Boulder county celiac group and was wondering if you would be interested in presenting at one of our meetings? You could do a book signing, promote your classes, baking examples. We would love anything! Currently, we have meetings scheduled for June 15th, Aug. 17th and Oct. 19th.
Please let me know if you are avaliable any of those dates! Thanks! I look forward to hearing from you!
Lesley
Lwp14@juno.com
Lili says
I have bok choy at home and was just thinking and looking at it what to do with it!? And here is my dinner solution for tonight! Thanks! By the way, the salmon patties were fantastic!!
Carol Baldridge says
Thanks for this bok choy variation of something I already do. I will try it soon. I just took a cupcake version of your spice cake recipe out of the oven. They smell great! Can’t wait to try them. I got this out of your “Gluten Free Almond Flour Cookbook.” I should receive a copy of your cupcake book that I won on “Gluten Free Easily.” Yea!
Lexie says
Love, love, LOVE bok choy! Thanks for this recipe. Gotta try it.
Stacey says
Is there an alternative to fish sauce? It’s not legal on the SCD and the suggestion about using coconut aminos is an interesting one…alas, it is not SCD legal either. It sounds like such a yummy recipe.
Stacey says
What does SCD mean?
Cathi says
SCD means “Specifict Carbohydrate Diet”. It’s a more extrememe grain free diet, sugar free, starch free, and yeast free diet. For those who have gone on a Gluten Free Diet and it hasn’t worked. My New Doctor is planning on using this Diet to get rid of the inflamation in my body that the Gluten Free diet has not yet healed. There are a few of us Celiac patients that despite being a Type A personalty and being extreme in keeping Glutens out of my diet, it has not helped with getting rid of Inflamation and the “Specific Carbohydrat Diet” is suppose go further in helping to relieve body inflatmation by eating only carbs that are monosaccaride, single molecule rather than Disaacharide such as Sucrose (Table Sugar) and polysaccaride Sugar such as starch both a double molecule type sugar. Manosaccride carbs are easier to digest and do not feed the bad intestinal microbes which can cause diarrhea. Also, meats are alowed with 24 hour ferminted yogart, which is the main part of helping the intestinal area to heal. Anyway, that is what it is in a nut shell.
Angela says
I have not tried this vegan fish sauce alternative recipe, but am looking forward to trying it as a fish sauce alternative in the future:
http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/recipe-vegan-fish-sauce–130535
“The recipe for vegan fish sauce below is based on these ingredients and its the best one I’ve found so far to replace fish sauce in vegetarian/vegan recipes. If you can’t find mushroom soy sauce, add a few dried shiitake to the seaweed mixture in the beginning.
Vegan Fish Sauce
(makes about 3 cups)
1 1/2 cups shredded seaweed (I use wakame)
6 cups water
6 fat cloves garlic, crushed but not peeled
1 T peppercorns
1 cup mushroom soy sauce
1 T miso
Combine wakame, garlic, peppercorns and water in a large sauce pan and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer about 20 minutes. Strain and return the liquid back to the pot. Add soy sauce, bring back to a boil and cook until mixture is reduced and almost unbearable salty. Remove from heat and stir in miso.
Decant into a bottle and keep in the refrigerator. Use one-for-one to replace fish sauce in vegan recipes. “
Stacey says
Alas, that doesn’t work either as I cannot have any seaweeds or soy products. :\
sweet road says
Mmmm I cannot wait to have me some bok choy!
Melissa says
If you want to make it vegan and soy free, try coconut aminos. The are great, and taste almost exactly like soy sauce!
AnneKD says
My husband is vegetarian, and though this looks great I won’t be able to make it with fish sauce because he won’t eat it. I’ll try to find some substitution.
Alison Thornton says
Fish sauce has soy in it.
I am wondering if it is the fermentation that makes it safe?
I have seen fermenting fish sauce and sometimes there is wheat in it.
What are you thoughts?
Great blog,
Thanks, Alison
elana says
Dear Alison,
Please click on the link in the recipe above and you will see that I use a soy free fish sauce.
Elana
Jen @ keepitsimplefoods says
I love bok choy prepared just this way. Looks delish!